Containers having a space for a material, a cooling device, or a heating device

ABSTRACT

A container. The container may be a beverage can. The beverage can has an outer body including a top, a shoulder, a sidewall, and a bottom. The beverage can also includes a liner inside the outer body. A space is defined between the liner and the shoulder, the sidewall, and the bottom of the outer body. The container may be a bottle. The bottle has an inner body including a mouth, a neck, a straight sidewall, and a bottom. The bottle also includes a sleeve outside the inner body. A space is defined between the inner body and the sleeve.

REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/863,201, filed on Oct. 27, 2006, the disclosure of which is expressly incorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates generally to beverage containers and, more particularly, to dual walled beverage containers.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In general, some consumer products are desired to be cold or hot when used by an end user. Specifically, such products are refrigerated if it is desired to be consumed cold or heated before consumption if it is desired to be consumed hot. For example, consumer products such as carbonated soft drinks, iced tea, iced coffee, or other such beverages are stored in refrigerators before consumption by the end user. Restaurants, convenient stores, and other types of retail outlets have long offered refrigerated packaged beverages. In the home, consumers routinely refrigerate packaged beverages for consumption of the beverage cold. However, in situations where refrigeration is not available, for instance when a consumer is traveling with a packaged product, the product either cannot be consumed cold or the consumer must store the product in an ice filled cooler or a similar type of device.

In the alternate situation when the consumer desires to consume a product hot, there is typically no method of conveniently heating the product away from a home. Examples of consumer products that may desirably be consumed hot include hot coffee, hot tea, soup, or other such consumer products. In restaurants and convenient stores, there is usually a stove, brew pot, or microwave oven that can be used to heat such products. However, when a consumer is traveling, there are usually no such devices to heat a packaged product until a consumer stops at a convenience store, his home, or a hotel having such similar devices. Additionally, it may be desirable to maintain the product at its desired hot or cold temperature for as long as possible before or during consumption of the product.

Accordingly, there is a desire for a method of providing packaged consumer products that can be desirably cooled or heated at any time and at any place. In addition, there is a desire to maintain the hot or cold temperature of a packaged product for as long as possible.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present application thus describes a container. The container may be a beverage can or a bottle. The beverage can has an outer body including a top, a shoulder, a sidewall, and a bottom. The beverage can also includes a liner inside the outer body. The liner has a top edge that is joined to the shoulder of the outer body. In particular, a seam is formed between the top edge of the liner and the shoulder of the outer body. Thus, a space is defined between the liner and the shoulder, the sidewall, and the bottom of the outer body.

The present application also describes a bottle. The bottle has an inner body including a mouth, a neck, a straight sidewall, and a bottom. The bottle also includes a sleeve outside the inner body. The sleeve has a top edge, a shoulder, a sleeve sidewall, and a sleeve bottom. The sleeve is joined to the straight sidewall of the inner body at its top edge so as to form a seam between the straight sidewall and the top edge. Consequently, a space is defined between the inner body and the sleeve.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A is a perspective view of a beverage can made in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 1B is a side cross-sectional view of a beverage can made in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side cross-sectional view of a bottle made in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

The present invention now will be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which exemplary embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout.

FIG. 1A shows a beverage can 100 made in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The beverage can 100 has an outer body 110. From top to bottom, the outer body 110 may have a top 120, a shoulder 130, a sidewall 140, and a bottom 150. FIG. 1B is a cross-section view of the beverage can 100, in which it can be seen that the beverage can 100 also includes a liner 160 inside the outer body 110. From top to bottom, the liner 160 has a top edge 170, a liner sidewall 180, and a liner bottom 190. The top edge 170 of the liner 160 is joined with the shoulder 130 of the outer body 110 at a seam 200. Thus, a space 210 is formed between the liner 160 and the shoulder 130, the sidewall 140, and the bottom 150 of the outer body 110.

As illustrated here, the outer body 110 is a typical beverage can as used for packaging beverages such as carbonated soft drinks, tea, and the like, as known in the art. However, it should be understood that the outer body 110 may be any beverage container known in the art for use in packaging and storing a beverage. The outer body 110 may be made out of a plastic or a metal. For example, the outer body 110 may be made out of made out of a conventional thermoplastic, such as PET (polyethylene terephthalete), PLA (polylactide acid), PP (polypropylene), combinations thereof, or similar types of materials. The outer body 110 may be manufactured by injection molding or blow molding (which may include injection stretch blow molding (one or two steps or otherwise) and extrusion blow molding), or similar types of forming techniques. Preferably, the outer body 110 may be made out of a metal. For example, the outer body 110 may be made out of conventional metals used for beverage cans, including aluminum, manganese, magnesium, steel, combinations thereof, or similar types of materials. The outer body 110 may be formed by any conventional forming technique, including punching, ironing, and other such processes as known in the art. Other types of materials may be used herein.

The top 120 may have a pull tab for opening the beverage can 100. For example, the pull tab may be any conventional pop top or stay tab. The shoulder 130 may be concave or tapered, or any other suitable shape. The sidewall 140 may be a cylinder having a straight wall, or any other suitable shape. The bottom 150 may be concave, tapered, flat, or any other suitable shape.

The liner 160 may also be made out of a plastic or a metal. Preferably, the liner 160 may be made out of made out of a conventional thermoplastic, such as PET (polyethylene terephthalete), PLA (polylactide acid), PP (polypropylene), combinations thereof, or similar types of materials. The liner 160 may be manufactured by injection molding or blow molding (which may include-injection stretch blow molding (one or two steps or otherwise) and extrusion blow molding), or similar types of forming techniques. The liner 160 may be made out of a metal. For example, the liner 160 may be made out of conventional metals used for beverage cans, including aluminum, manganese, magnesium, steel, combinations thereof, or similar types of materials. The liner 160 may be formed by any conventional forming technique, including punching, ironing, and other such processes as known in the art. Other types of materials may be used herein. Preferably, the liner 160 is made of a food grade material, as a beverage is to be packaged in the beverage container 100 within the liner. The liner sidewall 180 may be a cylinder having a straight wall, or any other suitable shape. The liner bottom 190 may be concave, tapered, flat, or any other suitable shape. Generally, the liner 160 may be any shape or size such that the liner may be inserted into the outer body 110. For example, the liner sidewall 180 and liner sidewall 190 may be of any shape or size equal to or less than the diameter of the top 120 of the outer body 110 so as to be inserted into the outer body through the shoulder 130 of the outer body before the top is placed on the outer body.

The top edge 170 of the liner 160 may be joined to the shoulder 130 of the outer body 110, by any means for joining two components together to form a seam 200. For example, the top edge 170 and the shoulder 130 may be joined together by double seaming to form a double seam. In another embodiment, the top edge 170 and the shoulder 130 may be joined together by heat-fusing to form a heat-fused seam. Other types of methods may be used for forming the seam 200 herein. In particular embodiments where the top edge 170 of the liner 160 has the same or a similar diameter or dimensions to those of the shoulder 130 of the outer body 110, a hole (not shown), may be provided in the bottom 150 of the outer body when it is desired to prevent a vacuum from forming when the top edge 170 is joined to the shoulder 130. The hole allows air to flow into and out of the space 210 between the outer body 110 and the liner 160. In particular embodiments, the hole may contain an actuation means for a cooling device or a heating device contained within the space 210. In other embodiments, the hole may be closed by any means known in the art, such as by a plug, heat-fusing, combinations thereof, or similar means.

The space 210 formed between the outer body 110 and the liner 160 is sealed from both the environment outside the outer body and the contents inside the liner. By forming the space 210 between the outer body 110 and the liner 160, a material 220 that insulates the beverage contained in the liner can be contained in the space. For example, the space 210 may be filled with air, insulating material, a cooling material, a heating material, or be evacuated to form a vacuum or a partial vacuum. In some embodiments, the space 210 may instead be used to hold a cooling device or a heating device and thus, a consumer may cool or heat the beverage at any desired time or place. In particular embodiments, the space 210 may be about 0.21 inches to about 0.26 inches (about 53 to about 65 millimeters) in diameter.

FIG. 2 shows a bottle 300 made in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The bottle 300 has an inner body 310. From top to bottom, the inner body 310 may have a mouth 320, a neck 330, a straight sidewall 340, and a bottom 350. The bottle 300 also includes a sleeve 360 outside the inner body 310. The sleeve 360 has a top edge 370, a shoulder 380, a sleeve sidewall 390, and a sleeve bottom 400. The top edge 370 of the sleeve 360 is joined with the straight sidewall 340 of the inner body 310 at a seam 410. Thus, a space 420 is formed between inner body 310 and the sleeve 360.

The inner body 310 may be made out of a plastic or a metal. For example, the inner body 310 may be made out of made out of a conventional thermoplastic, such as PET (polyethylene terephthalete), PLA (polylactide acid), PP (polypropylene), combinations thereof, or similar types of materials. The inner body 310 may be manufactured by injection molding or blow molding (which may include injection stretch blow molding (one or two steps or otherwise) and extrusion blow molding), or similar types of forming techniques. The inner body 310 may also be made out of a metal. For example, the inner body 310 may be made out of conventional metals used for beverage cans, including aluminum, manganese, magnesium, steel, combinations thereof, or similar types of materials. The inner body 310 may be formed by any conventional forming technique, including punching, ironing, and other such processes as known in the art. Preferably, the inner body 310 is made of a food grade material, as a beverage is to be packaged and stored in the bottle 300 within the inner body 310. Other types of materials may be used herein.

The mouth 320 may be of conventional design and may be sized to mate with a conventional closure. The mouth may include threads to accommodate a threaded closure or may be threadless so as to accommodate a snap-on closure. Other types of closure mechanisms may be included on the mouth 320. The neck 330 may be tapered or any other suitable shape. The straight sidewall 340 may be a cylinder having straight wall. The bottom 350 may be concave, tapered, flat, or any other suitable shape.

The sleeve 360 may also be made out of a plastic or a metal. For example, the sleeve 360 may be made out of made out of a conventional thermoplastic, such as PET (polyethylene terephthalete), PLA (polylactide acid), PP (polypropylene), combinations thereof, or similar types of materials. The sleeve 360 may be manufactured by injection molding or blow molding (which may include injection stretch blow molding (one or two steps or otherwise) and extrusion blow molding), or similar types of forming techniques. Preferably, the sleeve 360 may be made out of a metal. For example, the sleeve 360 may be made out of conventional metals used for beverage cans, including aluminum, manganese, magnesium, steel, combinations thereof, or similar types of materials. The sleeve 360 may be formed by any conventional forming technique, including punching, ironing, and other such processes as known in the art. Other types of materials may be used herein.

The top edge 370 of the sleeve 360 may be joined to the straight sidewall 340 of the inner body 310 by any means for joining two components together to form a seam 410. For example, the top edge 370 and the straight sidewall 340 may be joined together by an adhesive to form an adhesive seam. In another embodiment, the top edge 370 and the straight sidewall 340 may be joined together by welding to form a welded seam. Other types of methods for forming the seam 410 may be used herein.

The space 420 formed between the inner body 310 and the sleeve 360 is sealed from both the environment inside the inner body and the environment outside the sleeve. By forming the space 420 between the inner body 310 and the sleeve 360, a material 420 that insulates the beverage contained in the inner body can be contained in the space. For example, the space 420 may be filled with air, insulating material, a cooling material, a heating material, or be evacuated to form a vacuum or a partial vacuum. In some embodiments, the space 420 may instead be used to hold a cooling device or a heating device and thus, a consumer may cool or heat the beverage at any desired time or place. In particular embodiments, the space 420 may be about 0.21 inches to about 0.26 inches (about 53 to about 65 millimeters) in diameter.

It should be apparent that the foregoing relates only to exemplary embodiments of the present invention and that numerous changes and modifications may be made herein by one of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined herein. 

1. A container, comprising: an outer body comprising, a top, a shoulder, a sidewall, and a bottom; a liner inside the outer body, the liner having a top edge, a liner sidewall, and a liner bottom; a seam formed between and joining the shoulder and the top edge of the liner; and a space being defined between the liner and the shoulder, the sidewall, and the bottom of the outer body.
 2. The container of claim 1, wherein the container comprises a beverage can.
 3. The container of claim 1, further comprising a material disposed in the space, wherein the material comprises an insulating material, a heating material, or a cooling material.
 4. The container of claim 1, further comprising a cooling device or a heating device disposed in the space.
 5. The container of claim 1, wherein the seam is a double-seam.
 6. The container of claim 1, wherein the seam is a heat-fused seam.
 7. The container of claim 1, wherein the liner comprises a plastic or a metal.
 8. The container of claim 7, wherein the liner comprises a plastic selected from the group consisting of polyethylene terephthalate, polylactide acid, polypropylene and combinations thereof.
 9. The container of claim 7, wherein the liner comprises a metal selected from the group consisting of aluminum, manganese, magnesium, steel, and combinations thereof.
 10. The container of claim 1, wherein the outer body comprises a plastic or a metal.
 11. The container of claim 10, wherein the outer body comprises a plastic selected from the group consisting of polyethylene terephthalate, polylactide acid, polypropylene and combinations thereof.
 12. The container of claim 10, wherein the outer body comprises a metal selected from the group consisting of aluminum, manganese, magnesium, steel, and combinations thereof.
 13. A container, comprising: an inner body comprising, a mouth, a neck, a straight sidewall, and a bottom; a sleeve outside the inner body, the sleeve having a top edge, a shoulder, a sleeve sidewall, and a sleeve bottom; a seam formed between and joining the straight sidewall and the top edge of the sleeve; and a space being defined between the inner body and the sleeve.
 14. The container of claim 13, wherein the container comprises a bottle.
 15. The container of claim 13, further comprising a material disposed in the space, wherein the material is an insulating material, a heating material, or a cooling material.
 16. The container of claim 13, further comprising a cooling device or a heating device disposed in the space.
 17. The container of claim 13, wherein the seam is an adhesive seam.
 18. The container of claim 13, wherein the seam is a weld.
 19. The container of claim 13, wherein the liner comprises a plastic or a metal.
 20. The container of claim 19, wherein the liner comprises a plastic selected from the group consisting of polyethylene terephthalate, polylactide acid, polypropylene and combinations thereof.
 21. The container of claim 19, wherein the liner comprises a metal selected from the group consisting of aluminum, manganese, magnesium, steel, and combinations thereof.
 22. The container of claim 1, further comprising a plastic or a metal.
 23. The container of claim 22, further comprising a plastic selected from the group consisting of polyethylene terephthalate, polylactide acid, polypropylene and combinations thereof.
 24. The container of claim 22, further comprising a metal selected from the group consisting of aluminum, manganese, magnesium, steel, and combinations thereof. 